Poster – Earth Partnership: Indigenous Arts and Sciences

This poster was presented at the 2016 Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) PI Meeting held in Bethesda, MD on February 29-March 2. Earth Partnership: Indigenous Arts and Sciences (IAS) refines a model for integrating Indigenous and Western STEM education utilizing a 10-step framework for ecological restoration, project-based learning, and professional development. Through community dialogues and a collaborative design process with Native Nations of Wisconsin, Earth Partnership is developing an Indigenous Arts and Sciences approach that has allowed Native participants to voice their insights and aspirations regarding Native excellence in STEM learning. To date, 35 teachers, 20 students, and 50 community members have participated in IAS institutes and programs. Extended application and evaluation with Ojibwe bands in northern Wisconsin and with other tribal communities in the future will allow this approach to serve as an innovative model for addressing the need for increased Native American access to STEM fields and for future managers and stewards of natural and cultural resources.